1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to pallets and skids for transporting and storing vehicles, and more particularly, to the end caps of skids used in the transport and storage of two wheeled vehicles, e.g., motorcycles.
2. Related Art
Skids have been used to store and transport two wheeled vehicles, e.g., motorcycles, for over twenty years. Until recently, these prior art skids were made of wood and comprised a wooden platform having either one longitudinally centered single channel extending the entire length of the skid, or alternatively, two longitudinally centered channels spaced a predefined distance from each other. In operation, the two wheels of a motorcycle are positioned within the central channel(s) of a skid and the motorcycle is tied down, thereby securing the motorcycle to the skid. New skids are basically the same design and structure as the prior art skids, however, new skids are made of metal.
Regardless of the material used in constructing a skid, conventional skids have a bar at each end extending across the width of the skid and the channel(s) to prevent the vehicle from rolling off of the skid. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,676 to Creek, et al., a metal skid is disclosed for shipping motorcycles having a cross member secured across each end of the skid wherein the cross members block the wheels of the motorcycle and prevent the motorcycle from rolling off of the end of the skid.
The disadvantage of these conventional skids is that to remove a two-wheeled vehicle, e.g., a motorcycle, from the skid, the vehicle has to be lifted, pushed or run over a cross member located at an end of the skid. As a result, an operator may easily strain his/her back or cause other injury in attempting to remove the vehicle from the skid. Alternatively, the operator may remove a cross member at one end of a skid to allow the motorcycle to be pushed or rolled through the central channel and off of the skid. In either method, the operator must take the time and exert extra effort in removing the motorcycle from the skid.
Therefore, there is a need for an end cap of a skid wherein a vehicle may easily be rolled on to and off of a skid while eliminating the need for lifting, pushing or raising the vehicle over a cross bar during its installation on or removal from the skid. Furthermore, there is a need for an end cap for a skid wherein a cross bar located at the end of the skid does not have to be removed to roll a vehicle off of the skid.
The end cap of the present invention solves the problems associated with conventional skids by providing an end cap rigidly secured to an end of a skid that has a means for rolling a vehicle through the end cap. Specifically, the end cap has at least one channel extending through the end cap wherein each channel of the end cap is aligned with one channel in the top of the platform of the skid. The principal advantage of the present invention is that a user can easily and quickly roll a vehicle on and off a skid having an end cap of the present invention because the wheel(s) of a vehicle roll through one or more channels in the end cap.
The end cap also comprises a means for attaching the end cap to the top of a platform of a skid. The end cap can be designed and manufactured in either multiple segments or as a single component. In addition, the end cap may optionally have a vertical extension extending down from one side of the end cap and attaching to the bottom of the platform such that the vertical extension covers the end of the platform and adds stability to the skid.